RADIO ANNOUNCER: All news, all the time. This is WINS. You give us 22 minutes; we'll give you the world. ANNOUNCER 2: Good evening. It's 42 degrees at 5:00. I'm Stan Z. Burns, and here's what's happening. Mayor Koch urges talks to resume between the city and unions, but he says the unions have to give in a bit. The PBA negotiator says he wants real salary increases. Nassau police ask an 18-year-old mother why she abandoned her child. A federal judge rules an accused war criminal must testify in his deportation hearing. A House committee tells the president it does not like proposed Mideast arms sales. The news watch never stops. This is WINS. (music playing) WINS news time, 5:02. Contract talks have ended temporarily between the city and its labour union with both sides making some angry charges. REPORTER: The municipal labour unions broke off talks demanding that the city withdraw what they call their outrageous and irresponsible contract proposals. (America's 'Horse With No Name') # On the first part of the journey, # I was looking at all the life. # There were plants and birds and rocks and things, # and the sand was filled with rain. # The first thing I met was a fly with a buzz # and a sky with no clouds. # The heat was hot and the ground was dry, # but the air was full of sound. # I been through the desert on a horse with no name. # It felt good to be out of the rain... # What are you doing, going behind my back? Telling people I'm screwing up this operation? I got you a suite at the fucking Plaza Hotel. -The shittiest suite at the Plaza Hotel. -What? The shittiest fucking suite and the food is wrong. -Based on what? -And what is this? -What is it? -The food's wrong? What is what? You went in my closet or something? -(British accent): No. -Are you dressing him like you dress me? No, what are you thinking? This isn't all about you. What, did you try to dress me so I would look like him? No, you're not dressed like him. But I do look... I look like him. -No, he's in, like, velvet. -Velvet? You asked me to show you how this was done. You want to fuck it up, be my guest. -What is your problem? -Hey, look, I never laid a hand on her, all right? Is that what this is about? WOMAN: Well, technically, that's not true. Look, we never had sex, okay? Just, what'd I do? I went like... What'd I do? -I put my hand like this. -(mutters) -Don't you fucking touch me. -Oh. That bothers me. -Oh, it does? -Oh, yeah. -That bothers you? -Yes. You know, a lot of shit bothers me, too, but I was trying to help you. If I wanted to bother you, if I really wanted to fucking bother you, this is what I'd do. If I was trying to bother you, that's what I would do. (whispering): You shouldn't have done that. How's that? You bothered now? All right, don't make a thing of it. You shouldn't touch him; he doesn't like that. -Oh, my God, fix his hair. -No, you really shouldn't. -Jesus Christ, don't make a thing of it. -It takes some time, okay? -It's not like just... -Big fucking deal. We got to get in the other room. Come on. The mayor's in there. Yes, I know that. Should we go to the beauty parlour? Is that what we should do? How's it look? You look fine. Let's go. (Steely Dan's 'Dirty Work') # Times are hard. # You're afraid to pay the fee. # So you find yourself somebody who can do the job for free. # When you need a bit of lovin' # cos your man is out of town, # that's the time to get me running. # And you know I'll be around. # I'm a fool to do your dirty work, # oh yeah. # MAN: Look, um, I do business face-to-face, person-to-person. That's just who I am; call me old-fashioned, but... I come all the way down here, the sheikh's not even here? Well, excuse me, excuse me. I'll handle that for the mayor. No, the... It's for the mayor. It'd be a sign of disrespect to the sheikh if the mayor didn't take it. It's for you, Mayor. What are you doing? Carl, what the fuck? -What is this? -I'm gonna take care of it. Everything's good. I got everything under control. -Whoa, whoa, hey, hey. -It's for me. -I handle the money. -What is this? -What is this? What is this? -I don't know. -I don't know. -I mean, who are you? -Just stop it, okay? -I don't know you. -He's got to take it himself. -I don't know what the fuck that is, but it's weird, you understand? Misunderstanding, misunderstanding. Look, I came here to meet a sheikh, -that's all I know. -Okay, Mr. Mayor... I'm very interested in that, but he's not here apparently. Carl, you know what I mean? This is not right. Look, I'm very interested in meeting the sheikh. You let me know when that can happen. -(muttering) -We will. -Thank you, have a good day. (door closes) CARL: Irving, you better come get him. Go out there and get him right now. Help me get him back. Get the... Get him, go get him. He needs to take this fucking briefcase. I didn't want to do this in the first place. This is your show; you go get him. No, you have no choice. You have to go get him. Now, go get him so he takes the briefcase by himself. That's the whole plan, Irving. What were you doing pushing the fucking briefcase, dummy, huh? The whole fucking thing was falling apart. You know how much it fucking costs for this goddamn hotel that you fucking asked for? Now I got to go mop up your mess. I'm gonna go fucking mop up your mess. You understand what I'm saying, right? You understand that he has... It wasn't working. He was getting upset about the sheikh and... IRVING (voice-over): Did you ever have to find a way to survive, and you knew your choices were bad? I learned how to survive when I was a kid. My father had a glass business. I would rather be on the taking side than the getting-taken side any day of the week, especially after I saw how my father got taken. I mean, seeing that scarred me for life. I took it upon myself to drum up business. I became a different kind of guy than my father. I became a con artist for real from the feet up. I was gonna survive no matter what. I still had the glass business and a few dry cleaning stores also, and I did some art dealing on the side. Stolen or forged art. MAN (voice-over): Your host! Enjoy, enjoy. Enjoy. -Come on. IRVING (voice-over): So, one January, I go to my friend's pool party in Long Island. (Chicago's 'Does anybody really know what time it is?') (song continues) IRVING: Is that Duke Ellington on your bracelet? (American accent): Yeah, as a matter of fact, it is. He died this year, you know? I know. I doubt anyone else here knows or cares about it. Well, I care about it. He saved my life many times. Mine, too. Which one? "Jeep's Blues." "Jeep's Blues"? Mm-hmm, "Jeep's Blues." -Oh, yeah. -Yeah. You, uh, you want to hear it? Right now? -Yeah. -Sure. ('Jeeps Blues' playing) Who starts a song like that? It's magic. It's magic. WOMAN: (voice-over): He wasn't necessarily in good shape, and he had this comb-over that was rather... elaborate. He had this air about him, and he had this confidence that drew me to him. He was who he was. He didn't care. IRVING: I mean, she was a very particular person. Like me, she had come from a place where her options were limited. WOMAN: It actually can feel kind of sexy sometimes. There's a boldness in it. But where would that boldness take me? I didn't know. But I was gonna find out. IRVING: Like me, she learned to survive and reinvent herself. She knew she had to reinvent her life and her identity. And like me, she envisioned a better, elegant future for herself. Like me, she knew you had to have a vision. She came to New York, she envisioned it, and just like that... (snaps fingers) she applied for a job at Cosmopolitan magazine. INTERVIEWER: Well, you're obviously here for a reason; let's get to it. -All right. -Our cover story right now is on cunnilingus. What do you think about that? I like it. Do you have any clerical skills? Can you type? IRVING: She was unlike anybody I ever knew. She was smart. She saw through people and situations, and she knew how to live with passion and style. She understood Duke Ellington. WOMAN: I was broke, fearless, with nothing to lose, and my dream, more than anything, was to become anyone else other than who I was. He had a chain of dry cleaning stores. Enter. Yeah, I got two in the Bronx, and, uh, three in Manhattan. Hey, Byron, how you doing? This is Sydney. -Right here, come through here. -Hi. SYDNEY: He asked me if I wanted to come in and upgrade my wardrobe. He said he had a lot of nice things that got left behind by people and forgotten over the years. Man, you wouldn't believe the shit that people leave behind here. Unbelievable. -People leave stuff here? -Come back here. Oh, yeah, they go out for the night, you know, they drink, come here in the morning, put their clothes in and then they forget. They got no idea where they left it. -Look at that sequin thing. -It's beautiful. I don't know, is that nice or not? I mean, some of it... some of it's been here for years. They're not picking it up. -No one's picking it up. -People just leave... -You like it? -I love it. Sydney, it's yours. You want it, it's yours. (Oscar Peterson's 'Blue Moon') Whew! I like it. You look fantastic. (laughter) You're a knockout. Oh, my God. I could only dream about... These dresses are beautiful. Oh. -This... -That's... I'm... No, it's beautiful. Put it on. Come on. Come on, look at that. Please? -Perfect for you. -I don't feel... -Mmm. -Really? Love it. -This is for you. -(gasps) IRVING: I felt like we had a secret, just the two of us, you know, like that thing when you just want to be with the one person the whole time and... you feel like the two of you understand something that nobody else gets. I could just tell her everything about myself. And I'd never had anybody like that in my life before, and it felt like, finally, I could truly be myself without being ashamed, without being embarrassed. (door closes) What is this place? Do you sell art here? Yeah, sometimes. It's my office. Well, I know it's your office, but you have all these other places, so what's this for? Why'd you bring me here? This is getting to be my, uh, my main business, my growing business. I, uh, I help get loans for guys who can't get loans. You know, I'm their last resort. You're their last resort? 'Cause interest rates are north of 12% and heading to 18%. That's right, smarty pants. -Fucking Jimmy Carter. -Fuck Jimmy Carter. Well, fucking Nixon, really, and the war and the deficit and all of that shit, but... I fucking love you; you're so smart. You are. Thanks, kid, but how do you get them the money? (groans) Well... You don't, do you? You don't. Th-These guys are lousy risks, you know? I can't get them a loan, but I get my fee, $5,000. $5,000? You take $5,000 and you don't give them anything. All right, these are bad guys, you know? They got bad divorces, gambling habits, embezzling, all that shit, you know what I mean? Everybody at the bottom crosses paths eventually in a pool of desperation and you're waiting for them. How about "we"? "We"? Mm-hmm. How about it? Sydney, Sydney, I'm sorry. That was too much; I went too far. I didn't want to upset you. Sydney, please, I'm sorry. I know it ain't for everybody. Oh, God! I loved getting to know you! All right. Why did I tell the truth? Why'd I tell her the truth? (sighs) What did I do that for? What did I do that for? I fucking... I should never tell a woman the truth, but she's so smart. She's different. -(door opens) -She's different. -(door closes) -God. You said it was nice knowing me. You said it was nice to meet me. Yeah. Would you like to meet (British accent): Lady Edith Greensly? I have royal banking connections in London. I'd love to help you with your loan, but, of course, I have to be very selective. Yeah. (whispering): Yes. That was fucking fantastic. Thank you. Did you like it? I liked it. I didn't think you were coming back. Thank God you came back. I wasn't going anywhere. I fucking love you. You have me. (voice-over): And so Irving and I began our partnership in love and commerce. Rebecca, hold on. (voice-over): He told me to tell my friends I had London banking connections. Listen, she told me you can get me a line of credit. I heard you have banking connections in London, England. (voice-over): And after that, say no a lot until the guy is hooked. -Rebecca, get me that meeting, huh? -No! -Listen, tell her. -No. -I have never missed a check. -No. (voice-over): It was almost scary how easy it could be to take money from desperate people. Lady Edith Greensly. It's so good to see you again. Lady... Your Ladyship. Thank you. Again. IRVING (voice-over): These are the roles that we were meant to play. We're very selective. You got a strong application. We'll talk about it. I don't take a deal... that I can't close. You're not being aggressive enough in putting up your assets. You ever been to Great Neck? Everybody knows my dealerships. 5,000 gets me 50, right? Five'll get me 35, is that right? Five grand gets me 50? 5,000 gets me 50, right? IRVING (voice-over): I was doing so much more business with her. It doubled, then it tripled. (register dings) And I never met anyone-- man or woman, in business-- who was so careful and precise about everything; every stylistic detail. SYDNEY: Congratulations. IRVING (voice-over): We kept selling art together, too. ...genre painting, which is really rare for the time. It's a boy and his dog. It's a non-religious painting, um... -1655? -...fifty-five. Golden Age Dutch painting. Paul Klee. Expressionism. Bauhaus Movement. Before we go any further, is this legit? Ah, let's just say, you know, it's missing from Spain, leave it at that. Don't show any Spanish friends. IRVING (voice-over): I mean, it just took off. We got a better office; we called it London Associates, for her accent. (Jack Jones' 'I got your number') When I was around her, I felt joy-- fuckin' joy! And love-- that's what I felt. # I got your number # and what you're looking for. # And what you're looking for # just suits me fine. # We'll break the rules a lot. # We'll be damned fools a lot. # But when why should we not? # How could we not? # I've got your number # and I've got the glow you've got. # I got your number # and more. # Let's go and pick a number from one to 10. # Your losing streak is over; I can't win again. # And here's the punchline... # (door opens) (door closes) IRVING (voice-over): As-as far as I could see, people were always conning each other to get what they wanted. We even con ourselves. We talk ourselves into things, you know. We sell ourselves things we maybe don't even need or want, you know, by dressing them up. We leave out the risk, we leave out the ugly truth. Pay attention to that 'cause we're all conning ourselves in one way or another, just to get through life. SYDNEY (voice-over): He was married and he had a son. Daddy! SYDNEY: He had adopted her son. You're just such an artist! Look at that! SYDNEY: He was a really good dad. I respected him for that. Proud! You should be so proud! SYDNEY: It was a tough situation for everyone. What'd you do today? That kid Donovan is being mean to me. That big kid? I thought Mommy was picking you up, so he couldn't bother you. She was late. And then after we put out the fire, Mommy said stay in my room with my baseball cards. Wh-Wh-Wha-What fire? Did you know they made a lamp that has the sun in it? Mommy got the lamp, she made her special drink, and the lamp made a fire. I put out the fire. (Irving sighs heavily) The fire is out. First time in my life, I do the right thing. Oh, shut up. Shut up. No, no, no... I save a young single mother and a kid. I marry her, I adopt him... You fell in love! Don't you dare forget that part! We fell madly in love. Yes, I fell in love. My God, I fell in love. But you know what? I thought you were mysterious, like my mother, until it turned out that "mysterious" just meant "depressed," all right? "Hard to reach." I mean, I'm dying here. And you need somebody who's gonna be quiet, who's gonna be shy-- you're young, you're beautiful, you gotta find somebody else. You gotta go out and get some friends, all right? I don't like going out. You know that I get anxiety when I have to meet people. You know how hard that is. You cannot just stay in the house with a fuckin' sun lamp. All right? And I can't-- I mean, look, I can't trust you with Danny when you... that fire and everything... I can't trust to leave you alone. I put the fire out, Irving. There is no fire. Maybe if you were here more, then there wouldn't have been a fire in the first place. Oh, what, there wouldn't have been a fire if I was here? Just stop with the whole fire thing! God! It was a mistake! I'm sure a million people do that, all the time. Those sun lamps are dangerous. Shouldn't even have them in the house, really. I bet that happens all the time. This was nothing. We're not happy, all right? You know that I could take Danny, you know that most of your work is illegal, and you know that if you tried to divorce me-- I'm not saying that I would, but I'm saying that I could, and I'm saying that that is why I don't like divorce, Irving. Women do that in divorces. Women get the children and then the fathers never see them. My mother never got divorced. My grandmother never got divorced. There are no divorces in my family. I am not getting a divorce. Come on, what are we doing here? We fight and we fuck and that's what we do. That's our thing. IRVING (voice-over): She was the Picasso of passive-aggressive karate. Come here. Come here. IRVING (voice-over): She was better than any con artist I ever met, including myself, and she had me like nobody had me. Irving, come to mama; come on. IRVING (voice-over): You might say she was my karma for how I took advantage of people. Irving... -Oh, my God. -Come here. Come on. Get into bed. (mutters, sighs) Baby, there's such good stuff here. IRVING (voice-over): I did not want to leave the kid behind-- he was my son! She had me. I was her mark. Now, I can't assure you that your loan will be approved, but I can tell you that any deal I take, I close. However, my fee is non-refundable, just like my time. I want to thank you very much, Irving, for seeing me. I'm sorry I'm so nervous. Is that... Am I not buttoned? I just got to say, Mr. Rosenfeld, that Lady Edith was, um, very adamant that you were top-notch. That's correct. I really need your help; I'm desperate. I mean, I got the Audis and, uh, two boats, and I-I forgot to mention that I have a little piece of real estate in Long Island. SYDNEY: No, you didn't mention that. Two lunches and you never mentioned that. Oh, I was gonna mention it, then the guy with the hat walked in. -The hat? -You remember that? -I do remember. -I forgot; I totally... It was the second time we had lunch. -Yes. (chuckles) -I thought he was... You couldn't see his eyes. It was like he had no eyes. -Do they sell hats like that? -I don't know. -It's like he made it. -Where do they come from? -He's a great milliner. -Actually, I went to the store. I saw a hat store down the street. I thought maybe he bought it there, and I was gonna get you one, as, like, a memento. -Two lunches? -SYDNEY: Yes. -Really? -It's two lunches. -What's the big deal? -That's unusual. I was trying to get him to be more aggressive. -On his loan, that is. -You showed me a whole new side of the city I'd never seen before. -Oh. -Yeah, it's... You're welcome. No. Thank you. Yeah, right. Should I take you there? -Yeah, it's nice. Mm-hmm. -You liked it? All right, should I take you there twice? Stop. (muttering): What are you doing? What? -You like this guy? -Yes, I like this guy. Is this messing with your judgment? No, it's not messing with my judgment. -Don't be stupid. -Hey, hey, hey. Look at me. Play your part. Fine, you play your part. Well, take it to your people in London. Please, take it to them. I got the cashier's check right here. I give you five, and you give me 50 back, right? Please. Please don't reject me. Give a guy a chance. Zurich? You got an office in Zurich? Paris? I can call Paris. Excuse me for a second. -Yeah, take your time. -Excuse me. -Yeah. It's, uh... -Just be one moment. Do whatever you need to do. -(Irving muttering) -Go ahead, take your time. Stick around for a little bit. See my friend over here? I'm not moving anywhere, all right? You got the wrong office; you're gonna be embarrassed. I don't think so. Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, go easy on her. I may not have you, Irving, but I have her on fraud. -On fraud? -Impersonating another individual. -On fraud? What is that? -Yeah, she may not be... -Identity fraud? -You may be from England, but you're not royal, and you have no banking connections, -and that's a felony. -You don't have to cuff me up. How long is that? That's three to five years. -Hey, not so... -Oh, really? That's interesting. I-I don't even know your name. Richie DiMaso, FBI. Nice to meet you. You got to get away from this guy. , IRVING (voice-over): He wouldn't let me see her for three days. Even managed to delay her lawyer. She couldn't handle it. (door opens) How come the fluorescents are on? Can we kill that, please? Jesus Christ, I put this lamp here for you 'cause I thought it would be better for you. There's a wire here; they're scared because people hang themselves, but I know you're too smart for that. Where's the, uh, table and chair? There's no bed here? It's like a fucking asylum. Joe, is everybody off today? Jesus Christ, it's scary. Maybe I wanted to scare you; I don't know. Maybe it was my idea. Maybe I'm a little off the beaten path. You know, I don't know, maybe. Hey, you look dehydrated. Here, you want to have some tea? Oh, yeah, your lips are all chapped. It's herbal. It's my favourite. I know you think... Look at me. Hey, Edith, I know you think Irv loves you. I know you think you know him. You think that he sees the world as this cold, dark place, and he cares about nobody but a very few people on a short list. His son, his father, Rosalyn and you. And you think you're on the top of that list. What if you're not? What if you're not on that list? What if you're not even on that list at all? He'd be in here right now if he took the check, but no, you did. God, it's so clear to me. It's so... It's clear to me, but it's not clear to you. He uses you, Edith, to protect himself, to protect his son and his wife in Long Island. No? Yes, he put a ring on her finger. He adopted her son. They have a huge house, they have two cars. What does she do all day? I'll tell you what she does. She plays with her nails, she watches TV, and she spends your money, the money that you make. (Richie sighs) I don't like that you're in jail while he's going free. I don't like any of that. I want to help you. All the razzle-dazzle that he does, it's not good, it's not real, it's fake, it's not real. Who you are is who you are, between you and God, you and your soul. That's what matters. That's what counts; that's what I'm about, and that's what I see in you. Tell me you didn't feel it the first time we saw each other. Am I crazy? I don't think so. I'm not supposed to be talking like this, but I don't care; I'll break the rules. Okay, Edith, Edith, I want to help you. I like you. (whispering): I like you. I like you. Been in there three days. (clears throat) Hasn't been so good for her. (Richie sighs) How's that make you feel, her in there? That check was for you, right? But you knew something was off. (inhales deeply) It's 'cause you're good. You're, like, the best at what you do in the whole country, aren't you? But you know what, if the country were run by people like you, Irving Rosenfeld, we'd be living in Eastern Europe or Guatemala. You ever been to Guatemala? You ever been in jail in Guatemala? You ever try to get a telephone or a permit or anything in Guatemala? That's what this country would be like if we let people that are liars like you run this country. Who made you God and judge, huh? My grandmother lived to be 93 years old, never lied in her life. -Congratulations. -Thank you. I'm proud of that, too. Does that make her not a good person? Is that not something to strive for? Why you breaking my balls, huh? Get to the point. I see something in you, Irving. I get very excited. I think that we have a lot of potential here. Now, look, I came up with the idea. It's all from me; I want to change things. I want to go after white-collar crime. Irving, you're very skilled, and I want you to teach me, and we can do this. I want four people that do what you do. Fraudulent investments, fake certificates of deposit, stolen art, fake art. You get me four people, and you're off the hook. Four busts, and you leave us alone? We don't have to testify? You're good, you're done. Anything you want. But if you run, then your life's over. You're gonna be hunted, and it's gonna be very difficult for Rosalyn and your kid to live in this country. We need to leave. We need to run, and we need to do it now. Right, we'll go to Estonia or Romania, I don't care, but we'll take the cash from the bed, and get out of here, all right? We've talked about it 100 times. -What about Danny? -What about Danny? I adopted him; I gave him my name. I'm not leaving him with Rosalyn. -She's unstable. -That is a manipulation. Rosalyn will never let you go. She'll use Danny against you because she's too messed up to let you leave. I can't leave him. I love him, all right? He's my son. Richie said you would say that. -Richie? -Yeah. What, the cop? You're on a first-name basis with him? Yes, I am. I'm not even on your list, am I? -What list? -Your list, your short list, your long list. I'm not even on any one -of your fucking lists. -I don't know what you're talking about. -I thought you loved me. -I love you. I thought that we had something. We do have something; it's perfect. What are you saying? We're gonna go to Romania, we're gonna take Danny. -Yes. -Is that what you're saying? Yes, that's what I'm saying. -You, me, Danny, yes. -Really? Well, -you never said that before. -Well, I'm saying it now. We're us; we can make it an adventure like we did. We can make it an adventure like we make everything, all right? -All right. -Okay? We have to go now, all right? Trust me, we have to leave right now. I can't leave Danny; I'll lose custody. No, you have to take me away. -I can't. -We have to leave. -No, what are you saying?! -What are you doing? -What are you saying? -Please! -Oh, my God. -Will you pull it together? I can't believe this is happening. (sobbing) Don't say I don't love you. That's bullshit. This is bullshit. We are bullshit. You are bullshit. (crying): You are bullshit. Please don't do this. I just never thought that you were conning me. I could never con you. I love you. Please don't say this. Babe. No, I'm done. Don't say that. I'm gonna do these four busts, these four cons, to get us out of this-- not just me, but us. And I'm gonna get really close with Richie the cop in case we need to use him, if we need another move. We don't need another move. We need four busts, then we're done. We are gonna need another move. Trust me, and you're gonna be thanking me. (British accent): The key to people is what they believe and what they want to believe. So I want to believe that we were real. We are real. And I want to believe that a man could want me, and I'm gonna take all of that heartbreak and all of that sorrow, and I am going to use it, and I am going to make Richie think that I want him and that I like him. And I'm gonna be very, very convincing. And I'm pissed at you. 'Cause I am pissed at you. Maybe I do like him. Maybe I like him a lot. From the feet up, right? Baby. Quit your bellyaching and come up with something to get us out of this. You're right, I'm in no state to deal with this. So what's it gonna be, Mr. Mastermind? (door slams) . RICHIE (voice-over): An Arab sheikh? What do we want an Arab sheikh for? Well, how do you think this works, stupid? If you could not call him stupid, which he isn't. He's smarter than you. Last time I checked, he's in control and we work for him now, so be nice, okay? Okay. To set this up, to bust the con artist, we need to make the honeypot to attract the bees. To attract the bees, we need to offer them a wealthy individual who they can take advantage of. Someone special, someone new, someone amazing. And those guys are going to want to sell fake bank CD's to that guy. Take the sheikh's money, you see? SYDNEY: Only they can't get into his money unless they know someone, and that someone is us. Oh, that's good. So, if you want to get somebody like your, uh, con artist friend, Carl, uh, Elway, you get him to want to buy or sell... -Keep your voice down. -(quietly): Sell fake art or stolen art or fake certificates of deposit, he needs-- who does he need?-- he needs a rich sheikh guy, and there you go-- we can pinch him. Oh, that's right, that's right, but I don't tell Elway shit. I wait for him to call me. The art world is a small world, and one of Elway's acquaintances is clocking us right now. -Where? -Don't look. Don't look. You have a good look? How do you know the sheikh? This is my friend Al, from Queens. I do aluminium siding and roofing. IRVING: I want to show you something. This Rembrandt here-- people come from all over the world to see this. RICHIE: Yeah, he's good. Yeah. It's a fake. What? What are you talking about? That's impossible. People believe what they want to believe. 'Cause the guy who made this was so good that it's real to everybody. Now, who's the master? The painter or the forger? That's a fake? IRVING: That's the way the world works. Not black-and-white, like you say. Extremely grey. Irving, could I...? Arthur, how many times I got to tell you? -You can't meet the sheikh, all right? -Could I please -meet him sometime? -Carl can't meet him. Not yet. Another time. Come on. Arthur. Hi. -Edith. -Edith, hi. Yes, I wanted to introduce you to Robert Spencer. We're advising the sheikh together. -Oh. Oh, thank you. -Robert Spencer. Advisor to the sheikh. Yeah. CARL: What's this about a goddamn sheikh? Why are you leaving me out of this? Huh? I got to hear it from my friends? -It ain't for you, Carl. -What do you mean, it ain't for me? -Nah, it ain't for you. -What are you talking about? We got to do certificates of deposit. I can print as many as you need. -I got my associates here. -We'll get guys. Come on. This is not a one-man operation. Look, I can get other guys. What are you talking about, Irving? -I can get other guys. -You're telling me that you can get four guys to sell fake certificates of deposit to my investor within a week? Yes, I can make that happen. Carl Elway can do what he says he's going to do. That's interesting, but, you know, I got other guys lined up. I got a meeting. Here, look, these are my associates. I got to run. -Carl, his associates are here. -CARL: Don't go. -He's got a meeting he's got to go to. -Listen, don't go... -I got to run. -No, don't go any... No, don't go. IRVING (voice-over): Crazy thing about people-- the more you say no, the more they want in on something. Yeah, they're so stupid. I got to run. Come on. I'll tell them. Don't worry. Don't worry. I'll tell... Hey, you know what Carl just told me? He said he could do this whole thing with four guys within a week. -Or we could do something much bigger. -All right? Something bigger? Yeah, my guy deals with hundreds of millions of dollars. -How much bigger? -Hundreds of mill...? I knew you were holding out on me, Irving! Hundreds of millions of dollars? Like, much bigger. Like, I'm talking about, we could say never the fuck mind the CD's, and we could have some complete access to something huge. -RICHIE: Huge? Like what? -(glasses clink) Robert Spencer. I'm advisor to the sheikh. CARL: Carl Elway. I want you to think of the most undervalued asset in the state of New Jersey today. The rebuilding of Atlantic City. Look, maybe they... maybe they legalized gambling -a year ago -Wow. and nothing's happening. -Hey. -No licenses, no permits. Quit while you're ahead, Carl. I know the guy... I know the right people -who are going to help you out. -Really? -Who's the guy? -The guy is Carmine Polito. Who's Carmine Polito? MAN (voice-over): Carmine Polito? Carmine Polito, no. RICHIE (voice-over): My boss, Stoddard, proceeded to tell me that Carmine Polito was the most quietly powerful person in the state of New Jersey. A lifetime native of the very racially mixed Camden, which had become a ghetto. And where he had been mayor for ten years. A very beloved guy. A guy who never gave up on his people. His father had emigrated from Italy and had stoked coal. A big family guy with five kids. -(loud chatter) -They even adopted some other kid-- a black kid from the Boys and Girls Club who'd lost his family. I mean, his household was a joyous place. And his wife, Dolly, well, she was the apple of his eye. And the centre of the household. I mean, everyone loved this guy. And he had a huge heart. CARMINE (voice-over): The WPA employed craftsmen to paint this during the Depression. Why can't we employ people today to do work like this in rebuilding Atlantic City? He worked with all the unions, he was the leader of the state assembly, and he had just gotten gambling legalized in New Jersey to create jobs. But he couldn't get the funds to rebuild Atlantic City. And that was his problem. So, with our help, he was about to have his hand in the wrong pocket at the wrong time. And to me, that meant corrupt. STODDARD: You said grifters, con artists. We're not going after some politician. This is... this is a bad idea, Richard. Shh. Look, it's really simple. All you need is to put $2 million in a Chase account... -What?! -...under the sheikh's name. Whose $2 million? Shh. Just listen. $2 million under the sheikh's name in a Chase account that we control. Carmine calls up on the telephone, calls the bank and he sees that the sheikh is real and he has a real account. Five days. I'm not taking $2 million of the taxpayers' money, putting it anywhere for five days. I don't care if we control it the whole time. Stoddard, let us do what we need to do to rule out corruption and to get rid of the payoff guys that are ruining this country. That's my dream. -Don't smother it, please. -You know, Richard, I understand your eagerness. I-I really do. I'm, uh,... You know I'm from Michigan, right? Let me tell you a story about me and my dad and my brother. We used to go ice fishing every November. Ice fishing-- that's all anybody... that's what we lived for. -Holy shit. -Just listen to me. It's beautiful. You have a little stove. You-you huddle around, you keep each other warm. You drop a-a line and you just wait. One year, my-my brother says, "Let's go in October." He wants to go ice fishing in October. My dad says, "No, the ice is too thin." My brother says-- I love my brother-- he says... I understand. Your brother went out on the ice, the ice was too thin, he fell through the ice, he went in the water 'cause he was too eager, and you're saying I'm too eager. That's what you're saying? No, that's not what I'm saying. What are you saying? You know, we'll finish the ice story another time, young man. For now, no Carmine Polito. Go do your job. RICHIE (voice-over): Stoddard shot the whole thing down. Boring. (voice-over): But Edith was a genius. Yeah, you take me to Brenda. RICHIE (voice-over): She somehow found this woman who controlled the wire room. A woman I'd never even heard of. She's amazing. She's in charge of all the wire transfers. RICHIE (voice-over): Way back in a warren buried in the Bureau. -She likes cats. -This cat lady no one ever even talked to. And Edith met her in the ladies' room and became friends with her. -Brenda? Hi. -Oh! -How are you? -Hello. RICHIE (voice-over): This lady handled all the wires, and now she was working with us. She was excited to be included in an operation instead of just being on the other end of a memo. You said you liked exotic booze, so... -It was beautiful. -That's from England. -This is from England? -Yeah. That's right. And I brought you some tea as well. Oh, thank you so much. I mean, nobody -ever talks to me. -I know. I mean, they just say, "Brenda, do the clerical wiring stuff and don't ask questions." You need to tell Richie about your cats. -He loves cats. -Oh, my cats? -Oh, my cats? -Yeah. Well, that's Harry. Look at him standing up! Isn't that sweet? And that's Wendy. She's a rascal. But Barnaby, that's another story. Barnaby plays the piano. That's impressive. (voice-over): We got her to wire $2 million into an FBI-controlled account at Chase. It'd be there for five days, and if Polito called, he'd see that the sheikh was real. And by the time Stoddard caught up to us, Edith made sure his boss was impressed by my idea. So, before he even knew it was happening, his boss was calling to congratulate him. The sheikh with the money in the bank is a... RICHIE: Anthony Amado. He had a major hard-on to make a name for himself. I mean, this guy loved the idea of being famous. Don't be modest. RICHIE (voice-over): And Stoddard had to say it was his own idea or he'd look stupid in front of his boss. You made me accept praise from my boss for thanking me for something that never should have happened, something that I didn't approve. You should be happy. There's imaginative things happening in this office. All right? We're not just working in a box. (voice-over): We got the $2 million to put Carmine -and the sheikh together. -Punk. (voice-over): I liked being on this side of the line. But someone had been left out. IRVING: We succeeded because we stayed small. I got you Carl Elway. He bought stolen art, sold fake bank CD's. That's enough. That's one. I get you three more-- no politicians. You're going to do this because you got no choice-- you work for me. Now, you keep changing the rules. You know, you're getting a little power-drunk, Richard. You know, you want to tell him, Edith? You want to wake him up? Oh, no. I said we shouldn't do any of it, Irving-- you know I said that-- so now I support Richie. He's got vision. Do it heavy or don't do it. Wait. What does that mean? I mean, he's the one ruining America, not me. -How the fuck am I ruining America? -Huh? Because people just got over Watergate and Vietnam, all right, and you're going to shit all over politicians again? And just because you want to be a big shot, get a promotion. No. I'm thinking big, all right? This is going to be fantastic. We're doing video surveillance. I'm doing this from the feet up. You will never do it properly because you got too much government attitude to be small and sleek. I'm like the fucking Vietcong, man, all right? I'm in and I'm out. I was there the whole time. You don't know it, all right? That's the fucking art of becoming somebody who people can pin their beliefs and their dreams on. And you can't do it. How about a suite at the Sheraton Hotel? For Carmine Polito -and rebuilding Atlantic City, -Why not? -you need a luxury hotel for the sheikh. -Oh, come on. Carmine does backdoor dealings all the time. We don't have a... we don't... we don't got a budget for that, Irving. IRVING: You got to knock the mayor, the speaker of the state assembly, you got to knock him off of his fucking feet, all right? He's got to feel like he's out of his league. What you're offering, this deal, I mean, this is unheard of in the state of New Jersey, maybe even the whole fucking country, all right? A... a sheikh with hundreds of millions of dollars to rebuild Atlantic City-- are you fucking kidding me? That's gigantic, all right? And the mayor, he's going to want to see cash, he's going to want to see it in an account, he's going to want to see it right now, and he will check. And that's why this meeting isn't happening. Because, to get millions, you need millions. We already did it. What? We got the Bureau to park $2 million for three days. We've got the account numbers. "We" meaning you and him? Yeah, we did it. Really? Yeah, me and that guy. RICHIE: She showed me. You showed him our thing? You did that without me? Are you kidding? What are you going to do? You playing me? Are you doing this? You playing him? It'd be very bad for you if you're playing me. You're going to have to decide for yourself, kid. I just laid everything out on the table. It's all very exciting. I didn't know life could be like this. (quietly): You're pretty wild. You know, we're taking down a, uh... ...a very important politician. Mm-hmm. (Sydney grunts softly) (Richie inhales deeply) (exhales) (takes two deep breaths) (inhales) (exhales) (panting) (door opens and closes) . I'm placing $75,000 in this briefcase for Mayor Carmine Polito to procure casino license and building permits for Atlantic City. (no voice) CARMINE (over speaker): Wh-What is this? What...? Look, I don't know you. Excuse me, I don't... I don't know what that is, but this is very weird to me. This is very weird. I don't know what the fuck that is, but... I'll go out there and get him for you now. (quiet, indistinct chatter) -Mr. Mayor! -(horn honks) Please stop. Listen. I apologize if that prick offended you. -I really apologize. -Hey, I'm all right, thank you. -I'm okay. -No, no, no, no, no. I'm fucking embarrassed -to be associated with that guy at all. -It's okay. Can I just say something to you, please? Don't lose this opportunity to fucking Florida, all right, because of some... bullshit from that punk advisor, all right, with his "diploma," all right, who could never get into the school that we come from. Don't lose that opportunity. (sighs) Where you from? I'm from the Bronx. Grand Concourse, 164th Street. I got a lot of friends that live up there. Yeah, I go to Tomaso's on, uh... -Yeah, Tomaso's. Yeah, yeah. -You know Tomaso's -on Arthur Avenue? -Yeah, I love the clams there. -The clam... the spicy clams. -Yes. Oh, so good. -Oh, they're fucking to die for, those things. -Yeah, yeah, yeah. -Yeah. -Yeah, I haven't been there in a while. I like that place. Well, you know what? Tell me, can I call you Carmine? You know, Carmine, hey, my fucking heart's going from running down the stairs. -I'm not used to running. -(Carmine laughing) There's a lot of green grass in that hotel room up there, all right, and all the deals would float through you. You get... you get a serious piece on both ends, all right? You do with it what you will. I mean, I live in the real world, all right? I am a family man. I got mouths to feed and everything like that, but, you know, you got... we-we just... we got to grease you directly. No middlemen, no bullshit-- it's the Arab way. That's it. That's it. All right? Yeah, look, I understand. It's-it's a... it's a great opportunity. You understand, it's just... I got a little thrown by going to have a meeting with somebody that ended up -not being there, so... -Hey, listen, I was thrown as well. -I was thrown as well. -No, look, I understand. I-I-I'll deal with you directly. I don't want any middleman or any of that bullshit. -Done. Done. You and me. -Deal with you directly. I like you-- eye to eye, we can do business together. That's fine. Yeah, how long you known this guy? I mean, you work with this guy before? I got to work with him. It's the sheikh, all right, you know... But I still need to meet the sheikh, okay? Yeah. Done. After you. IRVING (voice-over): I'm going out for dinner -with Carmine and the wives in Camden. -RICHIE: Who? Carmine and myself and the wives. What? Without me? IRVING: He doesn't like you. What do you want from me? I got him to come back and take the money. You got him on tape, all right? I mean, I can't make him like you. You know, I mean... I did my job. Did you tell him that you were working with me? That I'm the sheikh's associate? I just fucking told you, he doesn't like you. I mean, let him have a night out with a human being, for fuck's sake, all right? He's going to jail soon. You're done with him. You got him on tape taking a bribe. RICHIE: Carmine has got to deal with me, Irving. We're going to use Carmine. Yeah, no, no, no, we're gonna get Carmine's... we're gonna use Carmine to get other people. That's what we're gonna do. What? Like who? Carmine's going to use the sheikh to pay off people. IRVING: You fucking nuts? What are you... Are you fuck...? RICHIE: We're going to let Carmine show the sheikh Atlantic City, how he's going to renovate hotels, and see who shows up and... whoever the sheikh pays off for licenses and casinos, that's who we're going to go after. We're going to go after all of them. More politicians? -Yeah. -You realize how fucking dangerous that is? There's no fucking reasoning with you. All right, Edith and I were so successful for so long because we kept it just small enough. You are taking us to a very fucking dangerous place, with very serious numbers! If you were that successful, how come you wound up in this room with me right now, taking orders from me? You're taking your wife out to dinner? Your fucking wife? Did I just hear you correctly? That's the one thing you heard me say. I just find it rather shocking. That's all. I get to handle two wives with one dinner. All right? I take Rosalyn out, she keeps her mouth shut, she sees that my work is legitimate, I get to keep my kid and I get to keep that fucking wife happy. Both wives happy. (Jeff Lynne's 'Stream of Stars') MRS. DiMASO: Richard, what are you doing?! Richard, don't eat in the bathroom! I told you so many times! And Diane brought napoleons. Come out of the bathroom and pray! Oh, my God, what did you do? Richard, the-the filter is broken in the fish tank. It's a problem. See, your job is to do the filter, Mom. Mine is to do the gravel. When you don't do the filter right, all the fish die. See? I can't get the top on the filter-- that thing on there. We went over this 100 times, Mom. And please help Richard to marry Diane so that I may have grandchildren and the Pope may have more followers. -(phone ringing) -And please bless this food that we are about to eat. Richard! Yeah, hello? Hi. Who's this? It's Edith. Sit down and pray properly! Are you all right? Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. I'm just... I'm alone, you know. Irving's out with Carmine. Oh, yeah, that's right, he went out with, uh, Carmine and his wife. Yeah, you must not feel so good about that. DIANE (over phone): Richard, sit down. Wait. Who's that? Who are you with? Oh, no, it's just people. "People"? I'm your fiancee. Richard! Oh, you've got a fiancee. You're engaged. I don't know, I don't know. No fiancee. I don't know, I don't know, I don't know. You don't know? You don't know if you have a fiancee? -I don't. No. -MRS. DiMASO: The fish filter is broken! Hmm. Interesting. What, you want... you want to get together? MRS. DiMASO: Richard, do something about the fish tank. 54th Street? Okay, 54th Street. Okay. Great. That's what that phone call was about. Everybody thought, "Oh, Richie DiMaso's going to stay in the office pushing papers." That's not going to happen, Mom. I'm outside in the field. I got people working for me. My ideas. I'm running the show. I'm the quarterback, and I'm not going to settle for no one, Mom. (Ella Fitzgerald's 'It's De-Lovely') # I feel a sudden urge to sing # the kind of ditty that invokes the spring. Hi. Good to see you. This is Irving. -Dolly, Dolly. -Hi. How are you? -Hi. -Nice to meet you. -This is Rosalyn. Carmine. MAN (voice-over): The man's here. -Carmie's here. -The man's here. WOMAN: You must be so proud. Rocco, how are you? Rocco, the... you know, like we do with the, uh... the chicken-- very thin, right? -Thin. Very thin. -Absolutely. CARMINE: Really thin, look, the way he does this... -does this chicken with the red sauce, right? -DOLLY: Beautiful. -With the red sauce, the lemon? -Oh, my God, the garlic. -The garlic is amazing. -It's so good. It's so good. Here it is, right here. Here it is. This is it. This. This right here, this right here! Look at this! DOLLY: Oh, my God! You're going to love it! CARMINE: You see it? This is so good, so good. It's the piccata of the gods. -So nice. -CARMINE: So what's this, Rocco? ROCCO: Carmie, this is a nice digestivo. -Salute. -Mmm. -Thank you, Rocco. -Thank you, Rocco. -Salute. You're welcome. -(Rosalyn gasps) I-I believe that you should treat people -the way that you want to be treated. -Yeah. Right? Didn't Jesus say that or something? -He may have. -I think also, always take a favour over money. I think Jesus said that as well. I don't know if he said the second one, but he might have said the first one. I chipped that moving furniture. It's my new obsession. Moving, redecorating-- it makes me feel better, like exercise. -Oh, yeah? -But there's this... but there's this topcoat that you can only get from Switzerland. And I don't know what I'm going to do because I'm running out of it, but I love the smell of it. -Oh, I can get it for you. -Irv and I can't get enough of it. -I can get it for you. Of course. -That would be amazing. There's something-- it, the topcoat... it's, like, perfumey, but there's also something rotten. And I know that sounds crazy, but I can't get enough of it. -Yeah. -Smell it. It's true. -(laughing): Oh, my God. -Dolly, historically, -the best perfumes in the world, -Yeah, no, it's disgusting. they're all laced with something nasty and foul. -It's true. Stop. Stop. -It is true. It is true. It feels true. It feels true. -Irving loves them. -Oh, my God. He can't get enough of that smell. Mmm. Can't get enough. -Carmine. -Can't get enough. I can't get enough. Carmine, smell her nails. -Sweet and sour. -Smell her nails. -Rotten and delicious. -What-what am I smelling? -It smells... smells like flowers. -Am I right? Flowers, but with garbage. -And, like... -Smells like flowers. -Yeah. -Flowers. -(laughter) You know what that is for me? It's coriander for me. ROSALYN: But Irv loves it. He can't get enough. -That's what hooks you. -DOLLY: Mmm. -He always comes back for it. -Yeah. IRVING: I can't stop. -CARMINE: I'm having a good time. DOLLY: Oh, you two are just so nice. IRVING: Hey, listen... -Yes? -He's going to... he's going to say, "We have to talk business." -Oh. -In five. -Four. -Four. -Three. Two. One. -Three. Two. One. Thank you. Dolly, can me and the man talk about business here? (laughing) (smacks table) (all exclaiming) DOLLY: She's all right. She's all right. No, no, no, no, no! Don't do that! -It makes me look more drunk than I am. -No, it's okay. -I got you. Okay. -I-I don't think that's possible. I'm not this drunk. No, it was just because I was laughing. -Irving, please don't make me go. -Oh, she's fine. She's fine. -I was just starting to have fun. -She's fine. All right. -Take her... take her to the car. -I was just starting -to have fun. -Let's go get her in the car. Didn't your fiancee want to come out tonight? Yeah. No, uh... I don't... yeah, no. No, I don't know. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, we don't have to talk about it. -It's all right. -I was just teasing you. I'm... It's all right. Do you ever think, like, how did I end up here, like, how did my life become this, do you ever think that? Then you wonder, like... am I ever gonna get out to a better place, or is this it? You feel like that? Yeah. Yeah, I do. I definitely know that. I'm sorry, we don't have to go dancing. We can go have coffee or talk or something, just... No, no, no, no. No. No, I need this. Please, I need to go dancing with you. Please. Okay, baby, let's go dancing. (Donna Summer's 'I feel love') # Oooh, # It's so good, it's so good, # it's so good, it's so good, # it's so good. # # Oooh, # I'm in love, I'm in love, # I'm in love, I'm in love, # I'm in love. # Oooh, # I feel love, I feel love, # I feel love, I feel love, # I feel love. # I feel love. # I feel love. # (Sydney laughs) (women clamouring) -RICHIE: Get out of the way. -Hey! There's a line! WOMAN: Hey! What the fuck, man? -(door closes) -What the fuck! WOMAN: Come on, I need to pee! Fuckin' A! (panting) WOMAN: Hey! Hurry up and get out of there. -I really fuckin' like you. -(pounding on door) -Yeah. -WOMAN: Hello! Yeah, I like you, too. I want to live. All right? For real. No more fake shit, all right? We're gonna wait until we decide to go for love, Richie, for real. -Okay. -That's when we fuck. All right? Not till then, okay? -Okay. -WOMAN: Are you gonna fuck for real, or get out of -the stall for real? -All right? -Yeah. -No more fake shit? -No more fake shit. -No more fake shit. -No more fake shit. -No more... fake shit! No more fake shit. Fuck me, I got to piss! # Baby, # my heart is full of love, # and it's all for you. # Now come on, darling, do what you gotta do # to start this fire. # Get out. Get out. (both laugh) Get out. RICHIE: I want to be fuckin' real! -I want to be fuckin'... -(excited chatter) I want to live...! (screaming) (laughing) (Tom Jones' 'Delilah') (singing along to radio): # My, my, my # Delilah # Why, why, why # Delilah? # So before # They come to break down the door # Forgive me, Delilah # I just couldn't take any more # Forgive me, Delilah # I just couldn't take any more... # Hey, boys, this guy right here-- Julius. This guy... Irving Rosenfeld, you know what he's gonna do? He's gonna bring the sheikh to Atlantic City, that's what he's gonna do. Where we can rebuild all those resorts there, put everybody back to work. He's gonna get this community, he's gonna get this state, back on its feet to where it belongs. Isn't that right? He's gonna grow our tax base and create thousands and thousands of jobs for everyone. You understand that? You know what that means? To Irving. -To Irving. -To Irving. -Come on, this guy right here, he's got a big heart. (quietly): I'd just hate it if it didn't work out. What do you mean? Of course it's gonna work out, Irv. Come on, guys like you and me? Come on, man. Right? We dream and we build. We never give up, we never quit. . (woman laughing nearby) Hey, can I ask you a question? -Yeah, sure. -Is the sheikh black? He's from... he's, uh... he's an Arab. Well, that-that's black, isn't it? (inhales) I don't know. I don't know, maybe it's a dumb question, but... I'm just wondering. Wh-Why are you asking? I would like to arrange... for the sheikh... to see Camden. To see the people of Camden. The people I serve. The people I love. Who are mostly black and Puerto Rican. Irv, I-I really want him to see... how good this is going to be for the community, how ready we are for this opportunity. And he can see how far his dollar will go. -You know what I mean? What do you think? -Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, we can do that. Yeah. -Yeah? -He can see Camden. Yeah. All right. (sighs) All right, good. Yo, hey, I got something I want to give you. -Come on. -For me? Yeah, I got... I got you a gift. -Let's get out of here. -Okay. The girls are going to kill us. (Carmine exhales) (sighs) There you go. What is it? CARMINE: It's a microwave. It heats up everything. Pasta, lasagna, meatballs, whatever. -Really? -It's science. Yeah, that's how it heats up the food; it's scientific. And you specifically... bought this... science oven for me? Yeah. A new friend. Thank you. Thank you. Don't put metal in it. Come on, let's get it out of here. RICHIE (voice-over): I need a jet at Teterboro. I need a jet at Teterboro for the sheikh. I told you that. You don't... you don't need a jet. You just let him walk to the curb at JFK. That-that's not how it works. No, you got to start from the feet up. That doesn't mean anything. What does that mean? It means you got to be committed. It means you got to be committed to something in your life, for Christ's sake, all right? I want a jet at Teterboro for the sheikh. It could be a small jet, doesn't even have to take off. 'Cause I know you're so worried about how much money the Bureau's gonna fuckin' spend. You take off and land on the tarmac, okay? All right, I'll... you can have a jet for an hour, but it -takes off and lands at Teterboro. -I got the jet? -You got the jet, yeah. -All right, thank you. All right, so tell me the rest of the ice fishing story. -Where was I? -Your father woke you up, it was a blizzard, it was Lake Ganoga. Come on, come on. Okay, well, my brother and I were on the ice, and my father came out of the house and I could see him coming. He was holding a lantern and he was in the blizzard, and I... and I knew he was gonna be angry. So I went to intercept my father, because I knew if he saw what my brother was doing, he was gonna kill him. Oh, oh, so you tried to protect your brother, but you couldn't, and that's why you feel bad, because you're trying to protect me and you're worried about me. Is that what the story's about? -It's about protection. -No, it's not about protection. -It's not? -No. All right, fine. ROSALYN (voice-over): "Don't put metal in that science oven, Rosalyn." "Don't put metal in the science..." He always treats me like a fucking child. I'll do whatever I want. (click, buzz) (Rosalyn gasps) Oh! -Another fire! -No, Danny, not that one! That one's empty. We got to use the big one. I told you not to put metal in the science oven. -What'd you do that for? -Don't make such a big deal. We'll just get another one. I don't want another one. I want the one that Carmine gave me. "Oh, Carmine. I want the one that Carmine gave me. Carmine, Carmine." Why don't you just marry Carmine? Get a little gold microwave and put it on a chain around your neck. You want to be more like Carmine? Why don't you build something, like he does? Instead of all your empty deals that are just like your fuckin' science oven. You know, I read that it takes all of the nutrition out of our food. It's empty, just like your deals. -Empty, empty. -Listen to this bullshit. It's not bullshit. I read it in an article. Look. By Paul Brodeur. Bring something into this house that's gonna take all the nutrition out of our food and then light our house on fire? Thank God for me. (exhales) (fingernails tapping on counter) (airplane engine rumbling) (loud kissing) -(Richie panting) -All right, you've got this. I don't think you should come to Carmine's party tonight. You look beautiful, by the way. Don't look at me. All right? Don't look at my legs, don't look at my hair, don't smell my hair, don't ask me how I am, don't talk to me outside of these roles, -'cause we're done. -Where you going? Just stand still. Get under the umbrella. Come on. It's just, Carmine wants Rosalyn to come. I don't care. You weren't listening. I don't care if Rosalyn comes. Just do your job, okay? You're nothing to me until you're everything. I'm not Rosalyn-- I'm not gonna put up with that shit. That's a fuckin' jet, right? -It's good. -That's the kind of moves you need to make. -Paco Hernandez? -Hi. How's it going? -Richie DiMaso. -Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you in person. This is Irving Rosenfeld. Paco Hernandez. Nice to meet you. Paco? He's... h-he's not a real Arab. -No, I'm Mexican, from Tucson. -Where's... Where's my guy? Where's Al? Where's Al from Queens? -Who? -My friend from Queens. Where is he? -What are you doing? -I got to hire an FBI guy. -You speak any Arabic? -Yeah. -(speaks Arabic) -That's it? -That's good. No, I have a couple of phrases. From the feet up, you motherfucker. What are you doing? Come on. Act noble. That's it, just, you know, like y-you can't barely understand English, you can't speak it, you say as little as possible, you follow my lead, all right? All right? Okay. Who's running this? I thought you were running it. I am running this, but you got listen to him. He's the guy with the vision. I got the vision? Know what vision I had? You just kissing my girl, right outside. That's what vision I had. I thought you guys broke up. I'm giving you a compliment. PACO: What's going on? -Don't worry about it, all right? -You got a knife. All right, this is for the mayor. You got to present it to the mayor. Just look at me, all right? Look me in the eye. This means a lot to you, right? -That knife. -Oh. Play it. You present it, all right? Friendship for life, all right? You got to feel it. -Right. -Sacred, can you do it? -Sacred. Sacred. -You got to sell it. -You got to sell it. -Sell it. -Okay. -If you believe it's sacred, it's sacred. -Right. -All right? Can you do it? -Listen to what he's saying. It's the details, that's what makes this guy a genius. IRVING: Again? You compliment me again? What is this, rubbing salt in the wound? What are you? I'm complimenting you. You got any other questions? PACO: Yeah, I think the name of this operation is offensive. What, Abscam. Arab scam? It's racist. Are you fuckin' kidding? What do you care? You're Mexican. (whispering indistinctly) Hello, Sheikh. -(speaks Arabic) -Hello, Sheikh, my friend. Welcome. On behalf of the great state of New Jersey, I want to welcome you to New Jersey. I know that was redundant. I'm sorry. -I'm just very nervous. -(speaks Arabic) Thank you, thank you. We have a great party planned for you this evening. What are you talking about, I can't go? I just did my hair and makeup and everything. IRVING: Sheikhs are very particular. It's international cultural protocol, you know. -You don't know that? -International protocol? -Yep. -What the fuck are you talking about? -(phone rings) -IRVING: Do not answer that. -Do not answer that! -Hello? RICHIE (over phone): Robert Spencer for Irving. Robert Spencer? I don't know a Robert Spencer. -What do you want? -I'm a business associate... Who is that? Who is that? What is that about? I tell you, for God's sake, I told you not to call here, all right? -Two more federal agents tonight. -What? -No. No way. -Two feds. -No. -I need them. Bodyguards for the sheikh. No, no, no, that's too many guys for me to control. -No. No. -Irving... remember who's in charge here. Rosalyn, get off the extension. I'm not on it. Look, don't call here again, all right? -Don't call at home. -All right? Good night. All right. If it's a business call, don't interrupt, all right? -Federal agents? -No, it's bodyguards for the, uh, visiting dignitaries, that's all. What is it, an IRS thing? -Like a tax investigation? -Why do you got to say that? I mean, that's why I can't invite you-- it's too complicated. -Are you in trouble? -Look, stop being so nosy. -Look at this shit. -Well, I'm only nosy 'cause you never tell me anything. Can we clean up this fridge? I mean, what are you causing trouble for -all the time? -(phone rings) Do not answer that! -Hello? -Hello. It's Carmine. Oh, hi, Carmine. We were just talking about you. Yeah, Irving's being a mean, boring man, saying that he doesn't want me to come tonight. -Tell him he's crazy. -Well, I agree. -Tell him yourself. -It wouldn't be a party without you. -C-Can you imagine? -And you're coming! Yeah. Tell him yourself. All right. Hey, Carmie. Irving, you're crazy. Your wife is coming. You kidding me? She's the life of the party. -Everybody loves her. -I'm the life of the party. IRVING: You know what she's like. She's unpredictable. She's just... Hey, don't talk about me like that! -What is Carmine saying? -I can't hear what he's saying. -Let me listen. -Hey, look, Irving, it's very important -that she comes, you understand? This is... -Carmine loves me. This is a really big, big night for us, you understand? Come on, you got to bring your wife. And Dolly's got something special for her, right? -Yeah, I do, I got your nail polish. -See? Listen, listen. Yeah, I got your nail polish for you, sweetie! See? Something special for you. What is it? What-what is it? Come on. Tell me. What-what... what is it? What is it? You got a girlfriend coming? CARMINE: Come on, I thought we were friends. You're not gonna tell me you got a girlfriend? This is ridiculous. -What-what is it? -Nah, it's... CARMINE: Look, we handle this like men, you understand? You're bringing your wife. We're gonna have a good time. IRVING: All right, we'll see you there. It'll be fun. That's an order from the mayor. Good-bye. All right, you happy? Go get ready. Yes, I am happy. c (Elton John's 'Goodbye Yellow Brick Road') # When are you gonna come down? # When you going to land? # I should have stayed on the farm. # I should have listened to my old man. # You know you can't hold me forever. # I didn't sign up with you. # I'm not a present for your friends to open. # This boy's too young to be singing the blues. # So goodbye, yellow brick road, # where the dogs of society howl. I know who you are. # You can't plant me in your penthouse. I- know who that is, Irving. -Yeah. Come on. # I'm going back to my plough. # Back to the howling old owl in the woods # hunting the horny black toad... # -Oh, it looks so beautiful. -So, this is the lobby. WOMAN: Want me to take your coats? Now, mind you, a week ago, this place was a mess. But what existed was this plasterwork. Look at the detail. This is beautiful. My sons are craftsmen. Please, tell them what you did. MAN: The birds, sky, -clouds, wood... -Trompe l'oeil. Trompe l'oeil. "Trick of the eye." CARMINE: We restore all of this, you see? Saved you $50 million. Look at me. $50 million, -right off the bat, like that. -Right off the bat. I waive the law that I helped write that said casino construction had to be built ground-up new. We don't do new. -No. We renovate. -We renovate, right? CARMINE: We put in some temporary fun. Some gaming tables, some play money for people to have a good time. This is for charity-- for the Boys and Girls Club and, uh, some arts programs. Hey, are you? (indistinct chatter) CARMINE: This... is the Ocean Room. CARMINE: There's, uh, some gentlemen sitting over there at the bar. That's 130 years sitting right there. That's how much time between them. They run the biggest casinos in the United States, and we have to work with them. Right. CARMINE: The good news is, they know how it's done, they get it done-- you don't have to worry; everyone makes their money. -IRVING: You mean the Mob? -Yes, but they're businessmen, okay? Now, spend as much or as little time with them as you like, but we do have to deal with them. All we got to do is go say hello. -We just got to say hi. That's it. -Carmine, maybe... I'm not sure that's such a good idea. We got to confer before we talk to these guys. Confer? What is there to confer about? I don't understand. (laughs): They're casino guys. They're casino guys. They're the businessmen. Yeah, we come all this way. Irving, we came all this way; we should be here. What's everybody scared of? What's everybody scared of? CARMINE: You just got to be delicate. Those are they guys that you guys are all scared of? Those guys over there? They don't scare me. -I'm not scared. -IRVING: Rosalyn? Rosalyn? (Santana's 'Evil Ways') Hi. Can I join you? (indistinct chatter) CARMINE: Irv, this is not the way to do this. It's not a good idea. -I love this. -ROSALYN: Hi. This kind of party looks a lot more fun. Everybody over there's really scared of you guys, do you know that? -MAN: No. -ROSALYN: Mm-hmm. Kids, I want you to go up and get some soda and pizza, please. It's a disaster. (men laughing) I think they got this room all wrong. Yeah? What would you do? I would do it in all black and gold, and I would do this bar like a big warm golden mirror. -Mmm. -Mmm. Sounds beautiful. -Oh, thank you. -But you expect that from her -because she's so beautiful. -Gorgeous. -Oh, God. And I love her hair, so I know I'm gonna love what you do. -Oh, my God. It's messy. -RICHIE: How do you do? I'm sorry, is she your wife? No, she's my wife. She's my wife. -Look at these fine gentlemen. -Hey, Carmine, there you are. -How you doing? -How are you? You well? Good to see you. -How you doing? -Hey, how are you? That's enough of that right now. MEN: Hey! Hey! Hey! -Come on. Come on. -ROSALYN: Oh, stop it. Hey, oh, no, it's because he's a party pooper. ROSALYN: He's so boring. May I present... Sheikh Abdullah, gentlemen, from Abu Dhabi. Sheikh, these are professionals, and they run the best casinos in the United States. Mr. Sheikh, as a sign of our seriousness, Mr. Tellegio came from Miami to meet you tonight. Mr.... Mr. Tellegio? Why didn't you tell me Mr. Tellegio was... He's in the back room. It's a sign of disrespect to talk, uh, business on the first meeting. -That's not true. -It's disrespectful... Yeah, I-I don't know what you're talking about. -He's got it all wrong. -You want to leave him back there in the back room waiting? Come on, let's go, we got -to go meet him. -My friend from New York -doesn't know the customs... -Hey, no disrespect, pal. Hey, Irving, I'm gonna be having fun. Maybe it'll be contagious, huh? MAN: You and me, we're gonna visit. -She's a fun girl. -I'm having fun. ROSALYN: Can you believe he talked to me that way? Carmine. IRVING (voice-over): Victor Tellegio was from Miami. He was Meyer Lansky's right-hand man. And his prior reputation as an enforcer from 20 years ago was known to never bury a body, because he felt it sent a stronger message to leave it in the street. (laughing): He looked at me like... This is the guy we now had to deal with. (echoing laughter) CARMINE: You sure you don't want to go into the Ocean Bar? It's really, it's beautiful in there. No, I don't have to go there. I like it here. There's an exit. I'm like a ghost. TELLEGIO: Nobody knows I'm here. Look, tell him I speak for our friends in Florida. We're very excited. It's been our lifelong dream to build casino resorts on the East Coast. (Richie whispering) You told him that? They didn't want the Jews to make money. They didn't want the Italians to make money. Definitely didn't want the blacks to make money. After the oil embargo, gasoline crisis, the hijackings, the Olympics, they don't want to see Arabs make money, trust me, not on our soil. And, I don't know, you can tell him this in your own way. I've been in the casino business 40 years-- it's scrutinized more carefully than any other business. Carmine made this legal, but... we must be careful, or they'll take it away. CARMINE: So, Mr. Tellegio, how do you think, uh, how do you think we should approach this? What do you think? What do you want to do? Well, if you want to get the gaming license and keep it, we have to make our principal investor here, the sheikh, an American citizen. Well, to expedite citizenship, well, that-that requires very special treatment. Well, you would know the right people to do that, Carmine. RICHIE: Carmie knows everybody. IRVING: What-what are we talking about? Uh, U.S. senators... uh, U.S. congressmen and senators. Wow! That's fantastic. I say stay away from that. That's-that's bad, that's trouble. -It's not good. That's trouble. -RICHIE: Irving, please. Who is this guy? Who are you? Huh? -What are you, a farmer? -(laughter) CARMINE: This is, uh... Mr. Tellegio, I'm sorry. -This is... this is Irving. -Irving. This is Irving Rosenfeld. -Irving, Irving. -Yes. New York businessman. What's the matter, Irving? What's the problem? -Nothing. No problem. -Eh, you know, don't get your balls in an uproar. Everything's fine, everything's good. -(Irving laughing) -It's all good, it's all good. It's all good. I just hope... the other part of this is all good. And real. Because we're real. -You know that. -Yes. That's correct. You deal with us-- we're a real organization. We're dealing with you, we don't know what we're dealing with. Where is he from? -RICHIE: Abu Dhabi. -Oh, he's from the Emirates. Yeah. Uh... RICHIE: I think... I think, what is, uh... No, no, let him speak for himself. -Uh... -(laughter, shouting) CARMINE: It's okay. He's a friend of mine. It's okay, I know him, I know him. I know him; he's a friend of mine. You guys are way too serious for a party. Holy cow. What are you drinking? -Hey, Al, listen to me. -You got a drink? We're in a very serious meeting. I apologize. AL: You got to come with me now. You got a speech that... -Everybody's waiting for you. -Al, I'll be right behind you. -Okay, trust me. Right behind you, okay? -Come on. IRVING (voice-over): What are the fucking odds of an Italian guy from Miami knowing Arabic? It turns out he's got casino investments in the Mideast, and he spent two years learning it to keep the upper hand. Listen to me carefully. If you're real, you put $10 million in the bank of our choice in the next two weeks. Carmine, listen to me carefully. If you're real, you put $10 million in the bank of our choice in the next two weeks or not only will the sheikh feel insulted, but our friends in Florida will feel deeply disrespected. So will I. -MAN: Hi. What a girl. -Rosalyn, you need to come -with me, all right? -Oh, I need to come with you? Yeah, you need to come with me; this needs to stop, all right? Oh, you think I should come with you? Why don't you go... Get your fucking hands off me, you fucking whore. -You're a whore. -Oh, yeah? Really nice. We're not gonna do this in the Ocean Room tonight, please. This is my husband's whore! You know, you stay here right now, darling. -Please, please, please. -You stay over here with me. Everybody just calm down. I don't know what's going on. You all right? Take it easy, okay? -All right. -These things happen. Whatever's meant to be is meant to be. -All right? -I always say that. -You say that? -Yeah. See, kindred spirits. Whatever's meant to be will be. Whatever's meant to be will be. -Yeah. -Yeah, faith. What the hell do you think you're doing? -What do I think I'm doing? -Yeah. What the fuck do you think you're doing? You're gonna come in here and judge me for flirting with someone after you've been fucking -my husband for how many years? -I'm not fucking judging you. -You don't have any fucking clue what's going on! -I got a ring on my finger. We have a child together. He doesn't love you, Rosalyn. He loves me, and you know it, and I know it, and he knows it. And it might be done now, but it was beautiful and it was real. -Stop it. -And we loved each other. -Shut up. -You scare him, and you manipulate him, and you use your son. Well, he must like it on some level. He must want it, because he keeps coming back for it. It's like that perfume that you love that you can't stop smelling even when there's something sour in it. (sniffles) You can't get enough of it. But guess what. He's never gonna leave me. He's always going to want me, and I will make you so sorry, Edith. I will make you so sorry for what you've done to my family. Mark my words. That is fucked-up. I would never say anything that fucked-up to anybody, but you do because you're gross inside. You're so fucked-up and gross. -Oh, I'm gross inside? -Yeah. Maybe you're gross inside. What, robbing people and all that shit that you do. Maybe we're both gross inside. That's what Irving loves about us. At least he's consistent. You know, sometimes in life, all you have are fucked-up, poisonous choices. (chuckles) # How can you mend a broken heart? Jesus Christ. # How can you stop the rain from falling down? # How can you stop # the sun from shining? # What makes the world go round? # I can still feel the breeze # that rustles through the trees # and misty memories of days gone by. # We can never see tomorrow. # No one said a word # about the sorrow. # How can you mend # broken heart? # How can you stop the rain from falling down? Ladies and gentlemen, our friend, the working man's friend, my friend, Mayor Carmine Polito. (cheering and applause) # What makes the world go round? CARMINE: Hello, Camden. Hello, New Jersey. Hello, Atlantic City! # How can a loser ever win? CARMINE: A lot of my friends have been out of work. A lot of good working families just want to work and live. (applause) They say there's no money nowhere. You got to be kidding me. Don't they know who built this country? (applause) But one thing we can all agree upon in the state of New Jersey is that we never, never, ever give up. Do we? CROWD: No! Please, raise a glass with me to a new era that begins tonight. From me and my family, we thank you for all the hard work that you've given us -in the community. -MAN: Yeah, thank you! Look what you've done. This is beautiful. Thank you. (applause) , (birds calling, sirens wailing) (door creaking) (indistinct conversation over TV) (conversation continues over TV) (conversation continues over TV) (conversation continues over TV) Edith! Use your phone? Last night was insane. I got it all figured out. (dialling) (over phone): Stoddard Thorsen. Listen, I need the Sherman Suite at the Plaza Hotel, okay? That's a whole floor of the hotel. No, no, no, no, I need the whole floor. I need it for my operation. Stop calling it your operation, Richard. It's not your operation, and I'm not giving you a whole floor of the Plaza Hotel. I have members of congress that are gonna come in right now and try to give the sheikh citizenship, all right? They're taking bribes. That's happening right now. That's what's happening right now. Bribing members of congress? Are you out of your fucking mind? Stoddard, Stoddard, no, shut up! Listen, do you know who Victor Tellegio is? Victor Tellegio. Works for Meyer Lansky. You know who that is? STODDARD: I know who Victor... Resorts International, all right? He wants $10 million. I have two weeks, I have two... Listen to me, just listen to me. Listen to me! You're not listening to me! I have two weeks! I have two weeks to put this thing together. And I need you to get me the Sherman Suite at the Plaza Hotel! -Lower your voice. -And you're gonna fucking do it! You don't get to say what happens. You don't get to yell at me. (slamming phone) (groans) Calm me down, baby. Calm me down. (growls) You've got to calm me down. You got to calm me down, baby. You got to calm me down. (muttering) You got to calm me down, baby. Let's do it, let's do it right now. -No, no, no. -Let's do it. -We're not gonna do it unless... -No, I want to do it right now. I want to do this right now. I want you so bad. Look at your skin. -No, no, no. -Oh, my God, your fucking skin is glowing. -No, no, no. -Baby, your fucking skin is glowing. We're not gonna go all the way until we do it for real. -I want to do it now. -Remember, we agreed on that. That's what we agreed on, all right? So we're not gonna do that, all right? All right? Where are you? -I'm here. -You're acting all scary. -Honey, I'm here, okay? Yeah. -Okay, are you here with me? (sighs) I love you. It is real now. I just... I just said it. So now's the time. (whispering): Look at me, look at me. I love you. I love you. I just said that. I'm in love with you. Do you want the truth? -You want real? -Yeah. You want real, okay. I'm ready for real. (American accent): This is real. Do you hear my voice, huh? This is real. This is real; what you hear is real. This is real. What? -This is me. -What do you mean? What, are you doing an accent? An American accent? No, there is no English. There's only American; there is no English. I'm not... What are you talking about? -Stop it. You're Edith, you're Edith Greensly. -No. Not royal, but you're British. I checked your records. No, I-I falsified my records back to birth. I falsified them. I... My name is Sydney Prosser, and I'm from Albuquerque, New Mexico. I'm not Edith Greensly. There is no Edith Greensly. -You're freaking me out. -This... No, you said in the stall that we were gonna be real and that we weren't gonna fake it. I'm being real now. This is who I am. I'm Sydney Prosser, okay? So... why did you do an English accent after that? I'm sorry I didn't tell you in the stall. I created Edith because I needed her to survive, okay? But I'm done with that now. I'm so fucking done with it. All right, like, you do what you need to survive, right? You, like... You, um, you know, you live with your mom. You have a fiancee you don't even acknowledge, right? That's what you do, and you curl your hair in little fucking curlers, which is... No, it's okay. You look good with it, but... You know, you have straight hair. So that's what you do to survive. You do all sorts of things, you know? We all do. Please don't talk about that. I'm confused. I'm confused. I'm fucking confused, too, all right? I think we should fuck, and then we'll feel it, and then we won't be confused anymore. (panting) No, I want to talk. I don't want to fuck, okay? -No. No. -I think that will be better. -No. -Let's just see how we feel. No, I'm not fucking you! I'm not fucking fucking you! (screams) Oh, shit. (door opens) RICHIE: Oh, my God. (door closes) (panting) IRVING: Can you please step away from Edith? -What the...? -Please, I'm asking you nicely. Please step away from Edith right now. Come on, step away from her. Please. You mean Sydney? I told him. I'm sorry. I just don't give a fuck anymore. I don't give a fuck; I don't fucking care. I don't fucking... Irving has a gun, huh? What Richie's got us into is worse than jail. I told you last night, don't sit down with those goons. And what? Now what, huh? No one's getting $10 million for Tellegio. It's over. RICHIE: I don't think so. What? What do you mean? Because when Tellegio finds out what happened, you think he's gonna go after me? Someone from the Bureau? Or he's gonna go after a politician? He's gonna kill you. And he's gonna go after your son and Sydney. (dialing) (line ringing) (over phone): Stoddard Thorsen. You got to get me the Sherman Suite. The whole floor. That's a no; I said no, wacko. Jesus. Then you're gonna tell me the point of that fucking fishing story. Not the way you're behaving. What's the matter with you? Where are you right now? I... Why does that make a difference? Just tell me where the fuck you are. The field office on 61st Street. I'm coming to 61st Street right now. You're gonna do what? To beat your ass. You're gonna do what? (phone slams, bell dings) You were right. Should've gone away. I should've gone away with you. We were supposed to do it from the feet up, like you always said. That's how we were meant to do it, only you didn't do it like that. You didn't do it like that. You played it safe, so there was always a danger you were gonna end up with Rosalyn in the dead space, floating on some dead spaceship with the furnitures and the curtains. And I was your lifeline out, and you were mine, and that was okay, you know? I wish I could get you back. Yeah. You know I can't do it without you. You know that. Come on. Me, you and Danny, like we said. Like I said. You never said that. I said that. We got to get over on all these guys. That's what we need to be thinking about right now. Fuck, shit, that's, uh... That's big. That's fucking crazy. (sighs) Whatever it is, it's got to be the best we've ever done. Okay? . STODDARD: "Agent DiMaso called me late on the night of the 21st. "I believe that he was intoxicated. "He threatened me. "I told him this was inappropriate. "Procedures exist for purposes that we must respect. "This is the third such call I received from Agent DiMaso. "He called me again on the night of the fifth at 2:00 a.m., "and he threatened to kill me. "Subsequently, he demanded that I allow him "to use the Sherman Suite of the Plaza Hotel for purposes of bribing members of congress." I... I am so sorry. I'm not finished. There's a lot more. (Richie sighs) I have nothing but the utmost respect for you as my mentor and... It's okay, it's okay. -As my mentor and as-as... -(clicks) What are you doing? I just want to talk from my heart. I don't want to put it on record or anything. I want to get vulnerable. Can I finish my... -Can I finish my statement? -Of course, of course. That's why we're here. I respect you. I-I think you do other things besides respect me. -Hello. -Hey, hey, hey, hey. Hey, hey, what are you doing? -What are you doing? Aah! -(bell dinging) It's just hard for me to control my passion. I'm a very passionate person. We're from New York. You understand this. He-he goes ice fishing in the Midwest. That was told to you in confidence. He's an ice fishing guy. Look at him. RICHIE: What are you doing? It's not you; that's not you with the gun. Stop it. No, it's me, it's me. Don't do something you don't know anything about, all right? -Wait, wait, put that... -I'll show you who gets shot. Do not load that gun! You drop that gun! I'm not even gonna hit you. -Don't! Don't! -Watch this, fucko. So... you want to use the Sherman Suite? -The entire floor? -Yes. Oh... God. Of the Plaza Hotel. What happened to the Mafia? I thought you... Yes, no, no, no, this is where they intersect. This is where the two things intersect. The two worlds, the politicians and the Mafia. Victor Tellegio's people, who run Resorts International... Wait a minute. Victor Tellegio showed his face? Yeah, I sat with... I sat with Victor Tellegio. I hung out with him. Yeah, we can get... We can get him, we can get his whole organization, as well as getting any number of congressmen. I mean, that's just... That's just... That's just peeling the first layer of the onion. Wow. How-how you gonna do that? We would get $10 million, that we... -$10 million? -And that's how we just -let them know we're for real. -$10 million? All right, so what does he say he's gonna do for us? -How are we trapping him? -They're gonna promise to build casinos, handle the skims, -do the licensing... -And you have what? You have him on tape saying this? You have that, right? No. I want you to find a safer way to get Victor Tellegio on a wire. No $10 million. That's crazy. -Thank you. -Right? Even to entrap Tellegio, it's crazy. But you can have the Sherman Suite. -STODDARD: No, no. -Stoddard, please. To go and get me some congressmen. Oh, my God. Go get some congressmen taking bribes. I want to pinch us some congressmen, okay? You come back to me; I'm proud of you. Thank you. And Stoddard. Good luck keeping your job, by the way, and staying out of jail, and not being killed by the Mob, but otherwise, you're doing a great job. What's the end of the ice fishing story? I'm not telling you the end of the ice fishing story! I'm gonna call your fucking brother -and find out the end. -My brother's dead! That's how it ends! He fell through the fucking ice! Not, that's not... He died a different way many years later. RICHIE: Listen, I know it's awkward, and, uh, I just wanted to say I'm sorry, all right? But I think we can stick together and, uh, still fulfil our goal. I mean, we got the Sherman Suite. Yeah, you got the whole floor? Got the whole floor, yeah. -Whole floor? -SYDNEY: That's good. Yeah, you okay? Yeah. You? Yeah, you know, it's all right. Just got hit a little bit. My eye is a little blurry. I got drops at the pharmacy. Uh, you okay? -Yeah, I'm good. -(clears throat) -Listen, I'm sorry. -Yeah. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Irv. You can put a camera here. Right in here, maybe, and we get it all on film. -You like it? -We do. You know what, give me those flowers. If we put the flower vase here, put a camera in there, and then we can get a clear shot of the couch -where we can put the congressmen. -That's right. -That's the idea. -And Carmine will go to jail after he delivers us -congressmen soon to be felons. -(phone rings) -Mr. Mayor, we really need to help. -Please sit down. Representative O'Connell's on the phone. I got to take this, you guys. Everyone out, please. This is sad; it's just sad. Darling, please, I got to take this. Shh. Okay, sorry, everyone out. Go out. Congressman, how you doing? It's Carmine. -MAN: Everybody out, please. -CARMINE: Tell me you're gonna be in Trenton this week. We have an amazing investment opportunity I'd like to discuss with you. I'm Federal Agent Richard DiMaso. I placed $75,000 into this briefcase for Representative John O'Connell of the Ninth District. Representative O'Connell was contacted by Carmine Polito to ask if he could obtain rapid citizenship through an active congress for one Sheikh Abdullah, investor. -How you doing? Robert Spencer. -Nice to meet you. I'm excited to be here. Oh, John, please, this brings the state back. How long we known each other? You know what this is gonna do for us? This is huge for the state of New Jersey. Stabilizes our economy. IRVING: Hotels, restaurants. Carmine sees it. It's waiting to happen. This fucking thing is waiting to happen. CARMINE: But the goddamn bankers, they're keeping their money on the sidelines. How we supposed to get anything done? Bankers only put money in the game when they can reap insane profit. Anyway, the problem is this, uh, this citizenship situation. I mean, we got to expedite as soon as possible. Well, I-I'll tell you, you came to the right place. -Yeah? -You know? Yeah. -We can make it happen. -CARMINE: Oh, hey. This is going to happen. You understand, this is real. On my family, on my kids, on my life, on my word. I know that, Carmine. You're a good man. (voice-over): I'm Federal Agent Richard DiMaso. I placed $75,000 in this briefcase for one Representative Gerald Sanders of the Third District. I don't want to do anything illegal. CARMINE: Please, Gerry, use it as a campaign donation, whatever you want to do. -All right. -Thank you. It means a lot. I'm placing $60,000 into this briefcase for one Congressman Eric Shoygen of the Fourth District. I'm gonna do what I can to help, Carmine. RICHIE (voice-over): $100,000 into this briefcase for two-term United States Senator Horton Mitchell of New Jersey. -Atlantic City. -That's right. All the way down the shore. A mecca by the sea. Carmine, you're beloved by your people. Your constituency is not even a constituency. It's your family. That's what you represent-- family. The one small thing you do for this man is a huge thing we do for the people of New Jersey. This is what we can leave... Hey, Irving, what are you doing? Where you going? Just got to go see a man about a dog. (chuckles) I'm sorry. MITCHELL: I've been a senator a very long time. 16 years. CARMINE: Trust me, this is probably the biggest opportunity that we could have here. MITCHELL: I will do whatever I can in the United States Senate. CARMINE: I appreciate this. On my family, on my kids, this needs to happen. It's got to happen. You have my word. (Irving sighing) I want to save us, I want to save us, I want to save Carmine. It's killing me; it's fucking killing me. You know the only way to help Carmine -is through the Tellegio thing. -Yes. It's dangerous, it's dangerous. We got to get in there, we got to get a wire in there, we got to make him feel safe. There's only one thing that could really fuck this up, and that's your wife. , (Evan Lure's 'To the Station') (song continues) I don't like your husband. You're no good together. He doesn't appreciate you. I mean, it happens; it happened to my marriage. That's why I went to Miami. Sometimes you just got to be tough. You got to stand up and you got to leave, you know? Sometimes you got to let something die to let something live. You're too beautiful to be unhappy. I know. I mean, I don't want to badmouth my husband, but just let me badmouth my husband for a second. He just thinks that he knows everything, and he's so full of shit. He's such a liar. He thinks that I'm stupid, but I'm not stupid. -No. -I hear him on the phone, arguing. He loves Carmine, but he hates that other guy, that curly-headed IRS guy or whatever, who's carting around my husband's ex-lover, that redheaded whore. -IRS? -Anyway, you can see that it drives him crazy. When you said IRS, what IRS guy? What are you talking about? I hear them on the phone. I think that he's got Irv in some sort of bind or something, and he's making him do all of this stuff. And so Irv and Carmine right now are at the Plaza Hotel, like, throwing all of this money away at, like, congress or whatever. They're giving money to congress or something. I don't... I don't really know, but I overheard it on the phone. Well, I hate to do this to you. (chuckles) I got to go talk to your husband. My boss, he's already angry. You stay here. I'm gonna give you some money for a taxi home. Have some dessert, finish the bottle of prosecco. I'm sorry. You all right? I don't like change. It's really hard for me. Sometimes I think that I'll die before I change. (chuckles) It's all right. It's gonna be okay. You got to come with me to Miami. Don't hurt him too bad. He's still Danny's father. (Wings' 'Live and Let Die') # When you were young, and your heart was an open book. # You used to say, 'live and let live'. # You know you did, you know you did # You know you did # But in this ever-changing world # In which we're living # Makes you give in and cry # Say, 'live and let die.' # Live and let die # Live and let die # Live and let die... # Life is ridiculous, and you know that I would never say anything bad about your father in front of you, but your father is a sick son of a bitch. Daddy's a sick son of a bitch? Don't repeat that. But yes. (tires squealing) (dog barking) -(door slams) -Rosalyn! Rosalyn! -What? -This is a dark moment in our relationship. -You know where I was recently? -What are you talking about? I was in your boyfriend's fucking car, all right? I saw your nail polish. What's this I hear about your curly-haired friend working for the government? -Who says this? -What are you talking about? -Who said that? Who said that? -That's bullshit. -That's bullshit. -Your fucking wife. -That's... -Rosalyn? He put a fucking canvas bag over my head! -Hey, hey, what the fuck? -Shut up. -What... -Shut the fuck up. Are you happy now? Because he is trying to kill me! -What are you talking about?! -What are you doing?! -What do you think you're doing? Huh? -Get out of here! -I'm not doing anything! -Why are you talking so much? You're gonna get us all killed! Danny. Come here, buddy. All right. Go draw a picture or something. -All right? -You are a sick son of a bitch for screaming at me like that in front of Danny. Attaboy, all right? I'm a sick son of a bitch? You're trying to get me fucking killed. I'm a sick son of a bitch? Oh, my God! You drive me so fucking crazy. What are you doing? Your boyfriend, your fucking boyfriend, will kill me, he will kill Danny, and he'll kill you. -Stop talking like that. -That's who you're dealing with. He's a mobster, all right? That's who you're dealing with. What do you think you're doing? -Stop, all right? Fine! -What are you doing to us? Yes, I wanted to hurt you, but how do you think that I feel? All day when you leave me alone, all day, and all I've ever wanted you to do is love me. (sobbing): That's all I've ever wanted is for us to stay married and for you to love me. And that's why I'm going to Miami! -You're not going to Miami. -That's why I'm going to Miami -with Pete! -You're not going to Miami! -You are not going to Miami! -I'm going to Miami with Pete! I finally found somebody who loves me! Just like you've always wanted! Too fucking dangerous. Miami, not now! -Too fucking dangerous. -He likes me just the way I am. You're gonna stay normal. You're gonna shut your fucking mouth. You told me that you wanted me to find a nice, quiet man. He's the one. Oh, and what a doozy you picked. Oh, you had that... He's the most dangerous guy ever. Well, what do you expect, Irving?! I know everybody through you! Why can't you just be happy for me? (groaning) Why are you taking your heart pill? Irving, what's going on? (groaning) Irving, take your pill. What kind of trouble are you in, Irving? What is going on? What's happening? (Irving groaning) (coughing) I got a plan. You got a plan? When did you get it? You know what? (sighs) It really fucking came to me when I was inside of that canvas bag, with your boyfriend's hands around my throat. Yeah, that's when it really came to me. -Take the fucking bag off his head. -We got two million... We got two million coming this week. -You see? -What do you think this is? -Come on! -You think this is a fucking down payment plan? What, we're Sears or Chevrolet? You ask Victor if he wants two million this week. That's real money. That's... real money. -Two million? -Two million this week. How? Wired in. -Hold, hold on to the scarf. -Irving, come on, you all right? That true? Is it true what he said about your wife? -It's not fucking true. That's not... -About Rosalyn? I can save all of us, and we could save money. I can take care you and Danny, okay? But you got to close your mouth. I knew it. I have always said, Irving, that you are very, very hard to motivate properly. And I knew that Pete was gonna go over there and knock some sense into your head. I've been reading this book, Irving. It's by Wayne Dyer, about the power of intention. And my intention in sending Pete over to you was so that you could come up with this plan. So you're welcome. (lighter clicking) Okay. Thank you, Rosalyn. Thank you for the plan. You're welcome. I appreciate that. So, uh, I think that we should be partners on this. Yeah, I'm a good partner, almost better than Edith. You ever think about that? You ever think about how you might have underestimated me? So what is our plan? Tell me the plan. What are you gonna do? I'm gonna keep my mouth shut, and I'm not gonna say anything, but what do I do if Pete calls me; what am I supposed to say? You got to stop talking about your government agencies, and your IRS and your taxes and your conspiracies, and all of that; you're gonna say how you were wrong. You were wrong about that. I'll tell Pete that I was wrong, but you know that in real life, I was right for saying all that stuff because then that spurred on the actions that made you come up with this plan. So I will tell Pete. Okay. The power of intention, Irving. The power of intention. Thank you. Okay, okay. -You were right. -Irv? Irv? (sighs) You're so smart. Good job, peaches. Irving, I've been doing a lot of thinking. And you need to grow up, and you need to face the facts, and I think that both of us will be a lot happier if we get a divorce. Okay. Just think about it. These things are never easy. All right. (door opens) Irving? Good luck with your plan. IRVING (voice-over): Necessity truly is the mother of invention. . The FBI was willing to wire the $2 million if it meant taking down Tellegio and his entire organization. (Electric Light Orchestra's 'Long Black Road') # They used to tell me boy you ain't goin' nowhere A mobster like Tellegio would never meet at the Plaza Hotel, but only at the office of his attorney, Alfonse Simone. # You gotta realize all your responsibilities. # You gotta get out to work and face reality # You gotta get up in the morning, take your heavy load. # And you gotta keep going down the long black road. # Long black road. # So I drifted for a while down the road to ruin. # I saw a lot of people coming back the other way. # So I kept on going when I heard them say, # You gotta get up in the morning, take your heavy load. # And you gotta keep going down that long black road. # Long black road. # Hi. Alfonse Simone. -Edith Greensly. -Alfonse Simone. -Hey. -Hi. Alfonse Simone. -Irving Rosenfeld. -Please, uh, be seated. I appreciate the fact that you all came in person, but, uh, the trip was really unnecessary, because this whole thing could've been done with a simple wire transfer. As a matter of fact, this is the number of our wire right here. Where is Mr. Tellegio? Mr. Tellegio, unfortunately, was called out of town on business. Oh, that's not good. You know, we were willing to come here today in person to meet with Mr. Tellegio as a sign of respect -to give $2 million... -Well, listen, I can assure you that I have the power of attorney... Excuse me, if you'll let me finish. We were willing to give $2 million today of the ten, but without Mr. Tellegio here... We can't... we can't make that decision. (whispering): That's not... It's not... It's just not the right time. Just let it go. You don't have the authorization to make this kind of choice, so don't be hasty, all right? Not being hasty. Just, let's be smart about it. All right, this is not how we do business. I'm sorry. Apologize, but it's... (muttering) I think you should hang in there, all right? For what? The guy's not here. -Edith... -That's it. You know what, I can't do it. This is a surprise. The-the sheikh don't like surprises. Don't leave. -Edith... -Come on. -this is not your decision to make. -It's not your decision. -No, I understand, but maybe -we can call the sheikh. -RICHIE: Come on, let's go. -Let's go. -Let's call the sheikh. It's not the plan. It's not the... No, let's-let's... I'll call the sheikh, yeah. Can I use your phone? -Please do. -Let's see. I don't know if he's in, but I'll call the sheikh. But before I do, I'd like to go over, specifically, what this money will be used for. Okay. What we will do is we guarantee all proper licenses and construction permits for any hotel-casino that plans to open before the end of the year, and we'll throw in the customary, uh, privileges of protection. What if there's obstacles? -What will you do? -Obstacles... We are prepared to overcome any obstacles. This is a big enterprise. If we have to pay somebody off, we'll pay somebody off. If we have to lean on somebody, intimidate somebody, we'll intimidate somebody. We're experienced. This is our business. That's powerful stuff. -Thank you. -And I'll tell you something else. At the end of this, we'll teach you how to skim and how to cut it up and make some money on the side, because we invented skimming. We've been doing it for 30 years. Thank you, thank you for clarifying that. Okay. I'm very happy. I think that'll be okay for the sheikh. (phone rings) This is the sheikh. RICHIE: Mr. Tellegio is not here. It's just Mr. Alfonse Simone, his lawyer. Are we still okay to wire the money? Simone can take the wire. What's the number? 531... -531... -78P... -78P... -76. 76. The funds are transferred. The funds have transferred. The money's been wired. I think we have a deal. Yes, we do, sir. Pleasure doing business with you. Okay, well, thank you very much, Mr. Simone. Well, thank you. The sheikh's very excited. I'm sure we'll be seeing each other. Oh, I-I'm sure that we'll be seeing each other very soon. -Looking forward to it. -(laughing): Yeah, so am I. You might even get sick of me. Like these two. I don't think I'll get sick of you. -Thank you very much. -Bye. Good-bye. Nice meeting you. (laughing) (David Bowie's 'Jean Genie') (laughter, excited chatter) RICHIE: How did that happen? How did that happen? I mean, how did that happen? Finally! Finally, we're getting some respect. We're getting some respect finally! It's you and me! It's... We're ambitious. That's why. Whoa. Oh, oh, oh. Oh, oh. Wait. Wait, wait, wait, wait. ALFONSE (over tape player): If we have to pay somebody off, we'll pay somebody off. If we have to lean on somebody, intimidate somebody... "We'll intimidate somebody!" (laughter) I'm kissing his boo-boos! I'm kissing his boo-boos! Oh, come on! (laughter) (yells) (raucous laughter) (laughs) Yeah, well, I got to do it. (shuts off engine) What do you mean, there's no sheikh? What does that mean? "There's no sheikh"? I want to face you like a man -because I want to be real now. -Who is it? -Who is that? -All right? What are you saying? That he's the feds. The feds? Yeah. Irving... uh, I-I... I'm a good person. You're a good person. I've been doing this for a long time-- for 20 years. Do you think I would have taken that money if it wasn't the right thing to do? -Hey, look... look. -Huh? You're a good person. I know that. I know. -But in all honesty... -You said that was the only way, Irv. You... you chased me, you remember? They fucking made me do it. What's a guy to do? -They had Syd in jail. -Whoa, whoa. You made me go back to the Plaza to take that money, you piece of shit! I was gone! -You fucking prick! -I know. I know. I know. You motherfucker! You fucking chased me, you piece of shit! -DOLLY: Carmine? Honey? -I was gone! I left! -Everything all right? -Please, darling, -just go upstairs. -All right, all right, all right. -Take the kids and go upstairs. -All right, I'll go upstairs. -Please. Please, just go. -Of course. Of course. I want to make this right. I came here because I want to make it right. Look at my face. You tell me that I'm lying to you when I say that everything I do is for the good of the people of New Jersey. Everything I do is for them. Am I lying to you? I never had a friend like you before. I used that money for the goddamn casino. I got some fucking leverage, all right? I can help you out. This is all shit. It's all bullshit. Look at this thing. Look at this. Ceremonial fucking knife. What, is this bullshit? Some toy? (knife clattering on table) -Carmine, Syd and I got a plan for you. -Yeah? We can help you out. Please get out of my house, Irving. Will you please leave? I'm asking you nicely-- please leave. Get out of my house. Go! Get out of our house! Oh, fuck. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. -I didn't mean for this to happen. -CARMINE: You break my motherfucking heart, Irving, right in front of my family. Truly, I didn't mean for this to happen. DOLLY: Go, go, go up to the bedroom. This is what matters to me most, and you're crushing that. You're going to take me away from them? I didn't want this to happen ever. Fucking son of a bitch! Get the fuck out. GIRL: Oh, my God! Stop! -You son of a bitch! -BOY: Dad, stop! I just want to make it right. CARMINE: Just get out of my house. Look what you made me do. Please go. -I'm sorry, Carmine. -Oh, my God. IRVING (crying): I am. I'm sorry. -Get out of here! Get out! -Will you just get out? Please go. Please leave. Please leave. Oh, God. No, Carmine. -What's happening? -It'll be all right. DOLLY (crying): No, no. Oh, my God, no! Oh, fuck. Oh, fuck. -SYDNEY: Irving? -(Irving groaning) Irving, are you all right? Where are your heart pills? -Where are your heart pills? -In the pocket. Inside. Here. There you go. Are you all right? Okay. Come with me. Come on. Come on. Come on, just walk. Come on. You okay? (Irving groans) I got to lay down. SYDNEY: Okay? Just rest. You ready? Yeah. I love you. (door opens) Please... come in, sit down. AMADO: You know where our $2 million is? -$2 million? -Yeah. It's with, uh, Victor Tellegio and Alfonse Simone. No, actually, it's not with Victor Tellegio or Alfonse Simone. He fucking knows about it. AMADO: It's gone missing. Did you know that? No, I knew nothing about that. -Where's it gone? -Well, that's interesting that you said that, because, while you were on your way over here, we got an... uh, anonymous phone call from... someone who said that, in exchange for immunity for the two of you and a reduced sentence for Carmine Polito, we get our $2 million back. That's interesting. That's very interesting. -I have no idea. -No idea? No idea what you're talking about. AMADO: I got it. I understand how these deals are made, right? -See, someone has leverage. -RICHIE: Anthony, fuck them. -Fuck them. It's over. -IRVING: I don't think so. We got them for wire fraud. It's over. You're done. -You're both done. You're done. -No, I... I don't think so. -I don't think so. -Oh, you don't think so? Richard, you requested the $2 million. And you gave Brenda the account number. -No, no. -We didn't... we didn't do any of that. None of it. How do we know that you don't have the money? Am I living in a fucking nightmare right now? IRVING: I find this a little offensive. -I f... -Really, I find this a little offensive, and-and I don't see that you got any sort of cock-solid case -here at all. -Don't let him get in your head. Listen to me. Listen to me. Listen to me. We're dealing with a very clever individual. -Don't let him... -Richard. Richard. Think about it, all right? You got some bigger assets. You got U.S. congressmen. You look good. You're going to be all over the news. You know what doesn't look good? A story about gross incompetence. I have a warrant for... I'm sorry, do I have the wrong office? This 701? Alfonse Simone? MAN: This is 701. My name is Roger Thigpen. I've had this office for 25 years. I'm a divorce attorney. You lost $2 million of taxpayer money because you were confused about the location and the identity of Victor Tellegio's attorney? IRVING (voice-over): The role of Tellegio's attorney, Alfonse Simone, was played by our friend, Ed Malone, the Cold Cut King of Long Island, whose party we were at when Sydney and I first met. Alfonse Simone. People believe what they want to believe, Richie. RICHIE: No, because you conned me. That's why-- because you both fucking con... You got onto me. You did. You know, that-that- that-that, uh... that doesn't sound so good, either, right there. You know, I mean, and I don't know what you're talking about, but let's just assume you want to go with that story. Really? That's the story you want to go with? All right? That's what you want the New York Times to hear? That you got conned by the very con men who you forced to entrap the members of Congress in the first place? That's what you want to go with? That doesn't sound so good for your whole thing, does it? And... how ironic that the ones who were working hardest to get the economy of New Jersey going, those are the ones that you round up. And why? Why? Because, what, they're the easiest to go after? And what about the real bullshit artists? You didn't even come close to the big leagues. Those big guys, the money men. That's what I was trying to go after. I'm sorry to tell you, you got none of them. STODDARD: You know, Richie, I think, uh... (sighs) we may call you as a witness, but otherwise you're done. I-I think you better go home. Stoddard? Go on home, Richard. IRVING (voice-over): We took down some very big guys. Some of whom, they were just doing business as usual, helping their communities or their states, but some of them knew they had larceny in their blood. And they even admitted it. But in all, it was six congressmen, one United States senator and my friend, Carmine Polito. We gave the $2 million back, so Carmine got the reduced sentence-- 18 months. The loss of his friendship would haunt me for the rest of my life. And when the story was written, Richard DiMaso's name was never mentioned. Syd and I, we moved in together. Rosalyn... The car is a little dinged up, I'm a little stiff, but whatever, I don't want to talk about it. ...she would always be interesting. You know, my boss knows you did him a solid. Yes, I did. He never took a nickel, so they can't get him for nothing. I was never going to let that happen. -All right. -Irv. I'm done with that nail finish. Bye for now. I'll see you next weekend. (engine starts) SYDNEY: Hey. Look at you. I think your mom got your nose. Is it okay that I wipe it? IRVING (voice-over): Our conning days were behind us. You can fool yourself for just so long, and then your next reinvention better have your damn feet on the ground. This one has abstract expressions. You might like it 'cause these ones... IRVING (voice-over): We got a loan from a bank and were able to go gallery-legitimate. The art of survival is a story that never ends. (Big band music plays) www.able.co.nz Captions were made possible with funding from NZ On Air. Able 2016